Williams: 'Housewives is not Betty World'

Vanessa Williams has said that she had no reservations about joining Desperate Housewives.

The actress told the Toronto Sun that she was flattered to have received the offer after Ugly Betty was canceled by ABC.

"The day I met Marc [Cherry, Desperate Housewives creator], I thought it was just a general meeting," she said. "But I sat down and he said, 'Listen, Steve McPherson [ex-ABC president] would love you to join our cast. Do you watch the show? Would you be interested? If so, we'll come up with a character together'."

She continued: "I said, 'Wow, let me think about it'.Then we talked about Broadway for the rest of the meeting, and when we left, he said, 'I'll have the agents get into it'. And it was done in four days. It was the fastest deal ever."

Williams - who played Wilhelmina Slater in Ugly Betty - added that she appreciated being valued by the network.

"I just thought, it's an established show, you're not in a dog, it's ABC, it's a well-oiled machine, and I'm being valued for what I bring, which is nice to hear," she said.

"It's nice when they say, 'We value you as a company gal, you got three Emmy nominations in three years back-to-back, and we want you to stay on our team'."

The 47-year-old will play Renee Filmore-Jones in the show. Reports have suggested that she will become interested in Brian Austin Green's new character Keith.

"I understand the reason they would want me to come and play to my strength, which is to stir stuff up," Williams said. "It's the seventh season, I know they want a shot in the arm and to bring in a different kind of mix, so I understand why ABC said, 'Aha, that makes sense'."

She added: "So I hope I bring a little glamour, a little of the outside, out-of-town girl into Wisteria Lane. But I can't be in another show. It's not Betty World."